this little light of mine.

Over the last few months I’ve been wanting to refresh my youngest daughter, Clara’s, room. Replacing the ole ‘boob’ light (as Danielle and I like to joke) was at the top of my list. If you’re wondering why we’re calling it a boob light – just check out the before picture and you will understand. Its seems like everyone has a few of these lights hanging around their house. So the hunt for a new light began.

When I first laid eyes on that glorious gold scalloped little number my heart skipped a beat. When my eyes landed on the price tag, my heart dropped. So I pinned it and tried to forget about it…like the other million designer items that I oogle but won’t ever own. I never truly lost sight of that little light and one day happened to stumble upon a light at Pottery Barn kids with an uncanny resemblance. Even though it was a cool $1,472.00 dollars cheaper, I still waited for the 20% off to seal that doppelganger deal.

I was a little skeptical about painting a brand new light but my lust for the gray and gold trimmed variety ultimately won. Most of the painting supplies I had on hand but purchased the gold leaf paint. This was probably the easiest DIY ever, from start to finish only about an hour (and most of that was drying time).

I’m pretty sure I will want to paint this again in a few years but do a fun bold color! Scroll through the post to find the supply list and steps to create this charming look. And don’t get the impression this light only belongs in a child’s room, it would be adorable in a hallway, home office, powder room, play space or anywhere you see fit in a variety of color options.

This painting project was more of an experiment than anything and if I had to do it over, there are a few things I would have done differently.

1. PREP: I suggest roughing up the paint a bit with a fine grit sand paper or some steel wool so the new coat of paint has something to grip to.

2. PAINT: since it’s the dead of winter, I didn’t have the option of spray painting the overall color on. I think this would be the easiest solution with the smoothest finish. I first tried a paint brush but didn’t like the streaks it left so moved on to the roller. The roller leaves a slight texture but one that you can’t see unless you are really close. Just be careful not to load up the roller with too much paint near the scalloped border so paint doesn’t drip along the inside. If spray painting, I would have probably sprayed the entire light inside and out (protecting the sockets of course). The paint dries within an hour and you are ready to do the gold trim.

3. GOLD TRIM: *I first started with a gold leafing pen but it was too watery and didn’t give good coverage. Then I tried the liquid leaf (in brass color) and that worked well.

This is the tricky part and you need a semi steady hand to do this. I held the light in one hand most of the time while painting the scalloped border, or leaning the light on my lap. The liquid gold leaf is very runny, you don’t need much and it covers nicely and dries quickly. Make sure when dipping the brush into the liquid gold to scrape off the excess- like nail polish. Light pressure is key because the gold leaf is liquid, it’s not like regular paint. I started at the inner connection point of the scallop and swooped the brush along the edge of one scallop stopping at the next inner point. I made the gold trim wider towards the middle of the scallop and thinner at the points and filled in or straighten the line where needed. It was sort of like putting eyeliner on! I also think a line that’s not perfect adds to the hand-painted charm of this, so don’t stress if it’s not symmetrical all the way around. Don’t forget to paint the little screw cap for the center part.

4. SEAL: I skipped this step because I didn’t have anywhere to spray here in the cold weather. I suggest using a clear top coat to seal the paint and gold leaf. It is suggested on the gold leaf bottle and while my husband was installing the light I noticed a few little knicks in the paint.

5. TIME TO INSTALL!

Check out all these other lovely color-ways! (sigh). I imagine black or navy with gold trim would be stunning as well.

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Hi there,
I love this project…the painted light looks great. I bought this light for my kitchen because I love it, but seeing this post has inspired me to paint it yellow with white trim. What kind of sealing coat do you recommend?ReplyCancel

I have been eying this pendant and it is even more precious painted! How is the light output on this fixture? My daughters room does not have much natural light and the current “boob” light fixture in there is pretty dim. Thanks!ReplyCancel

Hi! I think the light output is pretty good. It’s takes 2 60w bulbs. My Daughters room is average size and this supplies plenty of light. This light is on sale right now for 20% off if you haven’t already ordered 🙂ReplyCancel